By I got my vaccine shot on March fourth as scheduled. Drove to the county fairgrounds, which had been converted into a vaccination site with the kind of efficiency that suggests someone had been planning this very carefully. Volunteers directing cars, tents with heaters, a process that moved quickly. I sat in the observation area for the required fifteen minutes afterward and felt, not immediately but gradually, something release.
Fear is like that. You don't know how much you've been carrying until something you've been afraid of becomes less frightening. I didn't realize, until that fifteen-minute wait in the folding chair, how much I'd been managing. A year of carefulness, a year of calculating risk, a year of not hugging my daughter when she visited because we were both being sensible. I drove home through the cold and made a good dinner and called Sarah and said: it's done, the first one. She said: I know, I've been waiting. She'd been tracking the appointment.
Made maple candy that evening. The syrup I put up last spring, boiled down to soft ball stage and poured into molds. An act of celebration that happened to be seasonal. The first sap of this year's season ran on Thursday — I caught it by chance, went to check on the grove and found the tap dripping, the slow clear run that is exactly the right thing to see in early March in Vermont. The season is beginning.
Sixty-eight years old and vaccinated and the maple is running and the days are getting longer. That seems like enough to work with.
The maple candy that evening called for soft ball stage and molds, but it also called for patience — the same patience that had carried me through a year of careful distance and quiet worry. Powdered sugar is one of those foundational things I keep on hand for confectionery work, and making it yourself connects you back to the basic ingredients in a way that felt exactly right for that particular night. If you’ve never made your own, it’s simpler than you think, and there’s something grounding about knowing how to do it from scratch.
How to Make Powdered Sugar
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 5 minutes | Servings: 16 (yields about 1 cup)
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Combine ingredients. Add the granulated sugar and cornstarch to a high-powered blender or food processor. The cornstarch prevents clumping and gives the finished powder its smooth, shelf-stable texture.
- Blend until fine. Process on high for 30–60 seconds, until the mixture is completely smooth and powdery. Pause once to scrape down the sides if needed.
- Check consistency. Rub a pinch between your fingers — it should feel silky and fine with no gritty granules remaining. If any remain, blend for another 15–20 seconds.
- Sift if desired. For very fine results, sift through a fine-mesh strainer before using or storing.
- Store. Transfer to an airtight container and keep at room temperature for up to 3 months. Use anywhere confectioners’ sugar is called for.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 30 | Protein: 0g | Fat: 0g | Carbs: 8g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 0mg